Parents of a teenager killed by a suspected drunk driver in Newport Beach speak out and urge change in drunk driving laws

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (KABC) – The family of a 14-year-old girl who was hit and killed by a suspected drunk driver in Newport Beach is speaking out and calling for reform of drunk driving laws.

Dozens gathered Saturday to honor Rosenda Elizabeth Smiley of Rialto. On the evening of May 25, Smiley was crossing the street near Balboa Boulevard and Palm Street when she was struck.

The driver, 30-year-old Joseph Alcazar, now faces murder and drunken driving charges. According to Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer, he could face a prison sentence of 15 to life plus six years.

“My little girl was everything to her,” said Glori Smiley, the girl’s heartbroken mother, holding back her tears – Rosenda was her only daughter.

The mother visited a makeshift memorial for Rosenda at the crash site, which was decorated with messages, photos and flowers.

Rosenda’s father, Dr. Fillmore Smiley, remembered the last conversation he had with his daughter just hours before the crash.

“My daughter Rose, who was planning to spend more time with her boyfriend and friends, came into my bedroom and said, ‘Daddy, listen to me. How about we go to the beach instead of Lake Arrowhead Village?'”

He said, like any loving father would, he allowed her to hang out in Newport Beach under certain conditions.

“Most importantly, I need you to stay in touch with me so I know you’re safe,” the father said. “You know what… my daughter never made it home, and she didn’t make it home because of the behavior and actions and decisions of an alleged drunk driver.”

Alcazar, who has two previous drunken driving convictions, was drunk and had his 8-year-old daughter in the car when he killed Rosenda, prosecutors allege. He also ran over the foot of a 13-year-old girl.

In a statement from the public prosecutor’s office, the alleged sequence of events is described as follows:

“On Saturday, May 25, at approximately 6:49 p.m., 14-year-old Rosenda Elizabeth Smiley of Rialto was crossing E. Balboa Boulevard west of Palm Street with two other people in violation of a no pedestrian sign. A driver stopped to allow the group of pedestrians, including Smiley, to cross the street, but another driver, later identified as Alcazar, is accused of driving around the stopped car and striking Smiley, who died at the scene, and running over the foot of a 13-year-old girl.”

Alcazar’s blood alcohol level was described as “twice the legal limit.” His 8-year-old daughter and another man were in the car, according to prosecutors.

Alcazar has been convicted twice of driving under the influence of alcohol. According to prosecutors, in one of those incidents he was involved in a car accident in which he was seriously injured.

“A 14-year-old girl living her California dream, enjoying a day of sun and sand at the beach with friends to ring in the start of summer, is dead because of the selfish decision of a stranger,” Spitzer said. “A repeat drunk driver not only took the life of a little girl, but also endangered the life of his own daughter by getting behind the wheel while drunk, traumatizing her and the other young girls who witnessed him hit and kill a teenager.”

Alcazar’s arraignment has since been postponed until June 14 and he is being held without bail.

Meanwhile, Rosenda’s family is calling for more accountability and changes in the way drunk driving cases are handled.

“It’s time to start prosecuting passengers in a drunken vehicle,” Smiley said. “And if you kill someone because you’re drunk driving, you should automatically get life in prison. Life for life.”

As Rosenda’s family tries to overcome the pain, they can’t help but wonder what kind of life their little daughter would have had.

“She was beautiful and she was wild and she had her mind and she was strong,” Glori Smiley said. “Now it’s all over and I don’t understand why.”